I'm new to being a VW owner, but not new to diesels ('02 Duramax), and this is my first time reaching out for some help on a forum so I hope I can explain everything in as much depth as possible in order to get a little help or advice before hauling my car to the dealership to get raked over from what I've been reading in the forums I've read.
I have a 2012 JSW TDI DSG with panoramic roof, NAV System, and 89,000 miles that says "Key out of Range" and it won't start. I bought the car used last summer with 75,000 miles on it from a Ford dealer that said they put a new battery in it and I do see it has a new Motorcraft battery. I've tried just about everything possible from trying my second FOB, changing the FOB battery, unhooking the car battery and shorting the cables, putting a charger on the car battery to charge it up, leaving the battery unhooked for a day, and even holding the FOB next to the start button to resynchronize it, and nothing seems to help. Did I forget anything? Oh Yeah, I even tried the "Secret Start Up" procedure and the car didn't start.
The ignition won't turn on, but I can get the radio to turn on by pressing the radio power button. The FOB can lock/unlock the doors just fine, and the Kessy door handles will also lock/unlock the doors every time, but when I get in the car to start it I get "Key not in Range."
Just tonight while I was troubleshooting things, I was locking and unlocking the doors with the FOB while sitting inside of the car. I don't know what the sequence was, but at some point I opened the door and the dash said "Key inside Vehicle." My best guess is that I opened the door after I locked it, but I'm not 100% sure. After locking the doors the anti theft led in the drivers door blinks 6-7 times.
Over the past 2-3 months I've noticed a few things and don't know if they relate to what's happening in any way, but here goes.
1. I recall that I didn't hear the blinker sound over the speakers a few weeks ago and thought nothing of it until I was reading another "Key out of Range" thread.
2. On 3 occasions this winter during our -10 to -20 degree Wisconsin mornings, after I started my car, I was getting a hissing sound from under the drivers side dash as if there was an air leak. The first 2 times I restarted the car and it went away, but the 3rd time it went away after playing with the brake pedal.
3. On 2-3 occasions during the same -10 to -20 mornings, when I left my house, my glow plug light started flashing. I pulled over, shut the car off, restarted it and it wasn't blinking any more. I never felt any problems with the car and I don't remember if it was happening the same days as the hissing sound. The car started hard, but I let it warm up for at least 30 minutes or more before driving.
4. When I push the ignition button I get the yellow steering wheel light in the left side of the dash, but when I press the brake pedal I don't get the green foot light in the right side of the dash and I also don't have any brake lights. All the tail light bulbs tested ok.
5. I couldn't get the car out of park to load it onto my trailer until I talked to an out of state dealership that finally told me about the yellow lever inside the console off the right side of the shifting lever that releases it. Just pull upwards on the vinyl boot to pop the trim up and expose it then push down on the yellow lever. If anyone knows how to release the steering wheel, let me know. Loading the car onto the trailer was a little tricky.
I'd like to troubleshoot the brake switch, and I know some of you are going to think I'm crazy and try to laugh at me, but I can not find a brake switch inside of this car for the life of me. There is a metal bracket around the upper part of the brake lever with gray foam padding wrapped around it. I removed the foam and see a hole where a conventional brake switch should be, but no switch!!!! I have a module of some sort snapped onto the top of that same brake pedal bracket, but when I remove it, all I see is a wire harness connector and no spring loaded switch. I've poked my fingers in and around all these brake pedal parts and see no wiring or switches of any sort. The only bolt I see running threw that bracket is the one that holds the brake pedal and lets it swing forward and backwards.
Does anyone know if the brake pedal switch is part of the plunger assembly that goes threw the floorboard, or if the switch is in the engine compartment? Does anyone have any advice on something I may have overlooked trying, or does it sound like the dealership is going to have me by the short ones here?
I would appreciate any and all advice I can get and would really hope I'm not the only one that's seeing these types of problems. I've read some forums with similar problems, but not to this extent of symptoms. A few had instrument clusters replaced and the closest one I found to my problem really torqued my butt because the guy never posted what the dealership found wrong with his car!!! My car is on a trailer and parked inside my heated shop waiting for help or to be towed. HELP!!!!!!
I have a 2012 JSW TDI DSG with panoramic roof, NAV System, and 89,000 miles that says "Key out of Range" and it won't start. I bought the car used last summer with 75,000 miles on it from a Ford dealer that said they put a new battery in it and I do see it has a new Motorcraft battery. I've tried just about everything possible from trying my second FOB, changing the FOB battery, unhooking the car battery and shorting the cables, putting a charger on the car battery to charge it up, leaving the battery unhooked for a day, and even holding the FOB next to the start button to resynchronize it, and nothing seems to help. Did I forget anything? Oh Yeah, I even tried the "Secret Start Up" procedure and the car didn't start.
The ignition won't turn on, but I can get the radio to turn on by pressing the radio power button. The FOB can lock/unlock the doors just fine, and the Kessy door handles will also lock/unlock the doors every time, but when I get in the car to start it I get "Key not in Range."
Just tonight while I was troubleshooting things, I was locking and unlocking the doors with the FOB while sitting inside of the car. I don't know what the sequence was, but at some point I opened the door and the dash said "Key inside Vehicle." My best guess is that I opened the door after I locked it, but I'm not 100% sure. After locking the doors the anti theft led in the drivers door blinks 6-7 times.
Over the past 2-3 months I've noticed a few things and don't know if they relate to what's happening in any way, but here goes.
1. I recall that I didn't hear the blinker sound over the speakers a few weeks ago and thought nothing of it until I was reading another "Key out of Range" thread.
2. On 3 occasions this winter during our -10 to -20 degree Wisconsin mornings, after I started my car, I was getting a hissing sound from under the drivers side dash as if there was an air leak. The first 2 times I restarted the car and it went away, but the 3rd time it went away after playing with the brake pedal.
3. On 2-3 occasions during the same -10 to -20 mornings, when I left my house, my glow plug light started flashing. I pulled over, shut the car off, restarted it and it wasn't blinking any more. I never felt any problems with the car and I don't remember if it was happening the same days as the hissing sound. The car started hard, but I let it warm up for at least 30 minutes or more before driving.
4. When I push the ignition button I get the yellow steering wheel light in the left side of the dash, but when I press the brake pedal I don't get the green foot light in the right side of the dash and I also don't have any brake lights. All the tail light bulbs tested ok.
5. I couldn't get the car out of park to load it onto my trailer until I talked to an out of state dealership that finally told me about the yellow lever inside the console off the right side of the shifting lever that releases it. Just pull upwards on the vinyl boot to pop the trim up and expose it then push down on the yellow lever. If anyone knows how to release the steering wheel, let me know. Loading the car onto the trailer was a little tricky.
I'd like to troubleshoot the brake switch, and I know some of you are going to think I'm crazy and try to laugh at me, but I can not find a brake switch inside of this car for the life of me. There is a metal bracket around the upper part of the brake lever with gray foam padding wrapped around it. I removed the foam and see a hole where a conventional brake switch should be, but no switch!!!! I have a module of some sort snapped onto the top of that same brake pedal bracket, but when I remove it, all I see is a wire harness connector and no spring loaded switch. I've poked my fingers in and around all these brake pedal parts and see no wiring or switches of any sort. The only bolt I see running threw that bracket is the one that holds the brake pedal and lets it swing forward and backwards.
Does anyone know if the brake pedal switch is part of the plunger assembly that goes threw the floorboard, or if the switch is in the engine compartment? Does anyone have any advice on something I may have overlooked trying, or does it sound like the dealership is going to have me by the short ones here?
I would appreciate any and all advice I can get and would really hope I'm not the only one that's seeing these types of problems. I've read some forums with similar problems, but not to this extent of symptoms. A few had instrument clusters replaced and the closest one I found to my problem really torqued my butt because the guy never posted what the dealership found wrong with his car!!!
My car is on a trailer and parked inside my heated shop waiting for help or to be towed. HELP!!!!!!
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